Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are my own. WOW! When I saw this book described as Squid Games, and hunger games, plus kdrama added in, I had to have it! This was so good! I haven't seen anything like this in a minute. I fully can't wait for more!

I found that I didn't enjoy the book as much as I thought I would. I tend to gravitate towards stories about dystopian futures that are a bit grittier and dark, and I am sure outside of Snowglobe that would be the case. Most of this story took place inside Snowglobe, a city that provides reality tv entertainment for the masses who toil away outside the city providing power for everyone. One, I'm not a fan of reality tv and secondly, and it's not necessarily a bad thing, this is definitely targeted to the Young Adult reader. I was really more interested in finding out how this world came to be more than the pop culture drama that was being played inside of it.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley. Review based on final copy. All opinions are my own.
My interest was piqued by Snowglobe, and even more so because it was a translated book by a Korean author. While I’m not super familiar with some of the comps, like Squid Game, beyond the basic premise, I’m still interested in books that put interesting spins on the dystopian subgenre, and this absolutely does.
I was immediately drawn into the world building and power structures present in the narrative. Set a few hundred years in the future, in a time where the Earth has frozen over, the Snowglobe is the only part of the world insulated from it. There are people working on the outside to power the city, while there’s a reality-show-esque broadcast of inside Snowglobe 24/7. One of the opening pages even features a cast and crew page for Snowglobe, highlighting the heavily manufactured nature of it all.
Chobahm starts off the book as being one of the masses working to power Snowglobe on the outside, living with the dream of possibly becoming one of them one day, in a similar, if grim, parallel, to how we idolize movie stars in their gilded cages. Then, when Haeri dies, and her “character” is viewed as non-expendable, Chobahm is asked to replace her. While this is what she’s always wanted, it’s not entirely what she expected.
/The narrative has a lot of twists and turns, with reveals that serve to interrogate this structured world of the haves and have-nots in the hands of the corrupt Yibbon Corporation. It’s fairly fast-paced, keeping my attention throughout.
This was a solid read, and I’m open to reading more from Soyoung Park in the future, especially as there is a sequel forthcoming. I’d recommend this book if you’re interested a dystopian story set outside the US and the West.

I really enjoyed this book! It was unlike anything I've read in a long time, so I appreciated it a lot. I wasn't expecting most of the twists and turns and I'm looking forward to more set in this world. It was intense and I think teens will really like it. Thank you!

This dystopian set in a subzero world examines the effects of living in the spotlight and having your real life be a spectacle for views. Basically, the world is run by the entertainment industry because watching reality TV set in a small warm area of the world is the only outlet those stuck out in the frozen world have. Of course, corruption abounds, and the main character discovers that the secrets lurking in the Snowglobe go deeper than she ever could have imagined. The book shows how living a "real" life under a microscope can be nearly impossible. This topic seems especially relatable because of the rise of social media. This book will appeal to YA readers who love action and intrigue!

I love a good dystopian read as it’s one of my favorite genres. Snowglobe definitely checked all the boxes for me!

In a future frozen world due to climate change, a city called Snowglobe exists under a dome where the weather is always perfect, and the inhabitants have everything.

Outside in the frozen world, the people are the ones who power Snowglobe by riding stationary bikes as they do everything they can to be warm enough and have enough food to survive. Their entertainment is made up of 24/7 reality TV of the inhabitants of the domed city.

To be chosen as a Snowglobe inhabitant and to be affiliated with one of the reality shows either as an actor or as a director is everything and all they strive for.

I had so much fun reading this translated Korean book. It’s reminiscent of Squid Game with how bonkers it can get inside Snowglobe.

*Thanks to Delacorte Press and to NetGalley for the gifted eARC. I did end up buying a hardcopy because it’s such a beautiful book!*

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publishing house for granting me an ARC of this book. My following review is my OWN honest opinion on this selection.*
The Cover: Very eye-catching. I love the color choice and the image of the cracking ice.

This book is set in a world that is in constant winter conditions, think -50 all the time, with the exception of the capital city of Snowglobe. The city is climate controlled and provides the main source of entertainment & news for the whole world. To be in Snowglobe you had to either be born there or chosen to be an actor or a director. Most of the citizens star on shows that aired over TV to all the outlying territories. It takes reality TV to a whole different level.

Chobahm has spent her whole life dreaming of being a director in Snowglobe. She spends her days living with her twin brother, mother, and grandmother and working in the power plant that helps produce the electric that runs to Snowglobe.
Her favorite show, Goh Around, stars a girl the same age as her called Goh Haeri and the similarity in their appearance has always made Chobahm secretly think they MUST be related. In a turn of events, Haeri has been found dead and her director has shown up at Chobahm's job to offer the chance of a lifetime. All she has to do is pretend to be Haeri and at the end of the year she can be "written" of the show and Chobahm can go back to being herself and enroll as a director. Life in Snowglobe so different from what it has been portrayed as and very quickly Chobahm realizes she is in way over her head. She has to figure out what to do to expose the sinister truth and also to free herself and her new found friends/partners from a life of devastation.

I really enjoyed this book and actually can't wait to read the 2nd part!

There were a lot of elements to this that I did enjoy. But overall the plot felt shaky, with lots of holes and inconsistencies. Some things just didn't make sense. My suspension of logic and disbelief had to stretch just a little too far. I thought there was some commentary that could have been made on society's elites, addiction to TV/media, the use of said media as distraction from very real issues in life, and abuse of power, etc. that were never made. Maybe we're just supposed to infer those, or maybe they'll be addressed in book two? I was also ultimately disappointed by the anti-climactic ending. To be fair, I did not know there was a sequel, so I was expecting things to wrap up more thoroughly. Still, I'm not super eager to pick up the next one. But I may if it seems interesting when it comes out.

Snowglobe, a Korean import YA Dystopian, was a cover read, with the symbolic ice cracking as well as the roses, and who can say no to teal and pink?

In a few words, imagine The Truman Show and apply it to an entire city, not just one person. And it's in only place in the world where it's not freezing cold, much like the setting of Snowpiercer. In essence, you get a world where everyone uses TV as their main window for hope in a post-apocalyptic world, and many doing whatever they can to get into that world and survive. Add a dash of Korean Drama like storytelling, and this is a story I'm sure many Young Adult Sci-Fi and Dystopian fans will latch onto as much as I did. Though I will disagree with The Hunger Games and Squid Games comps; those two are more battles royales and only have loose comparisons to this book.

I enjoyed the world building for the most part. The world is frozen and towns are being powered by workers walking in hamster wheels for hours a day. Snowglobe, where the shows are filmed, is the only non-freezing city on earth. The city itself felt vivid and futuristic, being this 24/7 Hollywood set where almost everything is broadcast for the wider world. As we continue, we see that it's not the dream everyone envisioned. Some things about the world aren't fully explained, mainly in Snowglobe itself, but something tells me it's being saved for book 2. I liked the details and theming of TV being a source of hope, and what it means to be yourself.

Chobahm is a big fan of the Goh Around TV show, starting Harei, who's she looks very close to physically. She finds her world upside down when she's pinned as Harei's replacement. I love how Chobahm has to think through things as she's going through the inner world and figuring out that Snowglobe isn't exactly the dream world she might have imagined. She has some interesting character development as she goes through the story. The other characters are interesting, but I wish some of them were fleshed out a bit more, especially poor Miyru.

The prose mostly reads clean and the pacing was pretty good with somewhat shorter chapters and great cliffhangers to keep me reading. Some of the twists I knew pretty fast, but it didn't deter me from enjoying this read. Though I did think some of the twists were a bit over the top, and I presume some of that might be the K-Drama factor. While the story structure is a little bit different than me, an American reader, is used to, it was page turning, and that's what counts. Some things are left unanswered, but I'm assuming that's also book 2 stuff.

Side note about the translation/localization; While it does retain the Korean naming order (family name goes first) and reads cleanly, I really dislike when American publishers localize things to fit American standards that feel out of place. For example, raising the drinking age from whatever the age is in the country of origin (Korea drinking age is 19) to 21, or using imperial units, when everyone else uses metric, or referencing SWAT, an American invention, for a story that's likely set in a futuristic Korea. Compared to say, anime localizers, mainstream American publishing is at least a decade behind. Overall, this is mostly nitpicking on my part.

I'm so glad that the second half of the story has already been confirmed to be translated and coming to English readers sooner rather than later.

There is a lot to like in this book. It is a solidly built dystopian world. The book is also a well paced easy read that will draw in even reluctant readers. It is also the first of a two book series, so it will bring readers back for book 2. Is it perfect? Not quite. I think the ending felt a tiny bit rushed and was a bit too abrupt. However, I can see young adult readers flocking to this book. It is going to be a bestseller!

Snowglobe has a gorgeous cover and a super interesting premise, but unfortunatley, fell flat for me. I had a hard time becoming invested in the story or the characters. I found myself confused throughout portions of the book, and now having finished, remain very confused about certain plot lines. I am so interested if any of my above complaints can be attributed to this book being translated. I'm not sure! This book was, at times, a wild ride, and since books hit everyone differently, this might be a big win for other YA dystopian fans!

Thank you NetGalley and to the publisher for an eARC!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an early copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.
Snowglobe is a dystopian YA story where the "Haves" live in Snowglobe- a climate controlled city where their luxurious and comfortable lives are recorded for what is essentially reality tv, which is then broadcast 24/7 all over and watching this is a huge part of the culture and loved by the "have nots" who work and live in the freezing, poor dystopian land and dream about someday going to snowglobe. The main character gets a chance at her dream job within snowglobe, only it doesn't turn out to be her dream job after all. I thought the world and overall premise and twists at the end were interesting. Overall I thought it was a little anticlimactic but would be curious to read the sequel to see where it goes. A few of the decisions made by some of the characters seemed a bit unbelievable, but overall I had a good time with it and would check out the sequel. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

This was a hard one to categorize as far as genre. I want to say it has some sci-fi elements to it. There were a lot of twists I wasn't expecting.

I'm so glad to have been able to read a copy of this translated work. I really can't wait to see what happens next.

I loved the story, the world building and meeting the different characters. I felt completely immersed in the story and couldn't stop reading it. I kept seeing ads for this book and it was definitely worth the hype!

I got this book from netgalley.
3.75
The cover is what made me click on the book. So beautiful and I find myself thinking of it often. The first 80 pages or so were not easy to get through. Some of the struggle from the writer telling instead of showing. But some of this was my fault. I was thinking the book was more going to be about the main character finding out snowglobe is horrible when we already saw it was. There was A LOT more than that. This book takes us to a dark and brutal place. The ending was choppy which caused it to not be as satisfying as it could have been. Overall, it was a good read and I don't feel like I wasted my time. There's so many things I'm excited to find out in the next book.

It’s a solid dystopian themed book but for me I couldn’t get into it. Maybe it was the translation to English I feel like I missed a few things. But overall, I recommend it to anyone who really enjoys dystopian, hunger games esc books

First, as always with translated books; the translation itself. You'll be pleased to know it's smooth as silk. Apart from the names and some foods, there's no hint that this was not written in English; the language flows, it's colloquial, it's no hardship to read.

Now, the story. What a fascinating idea! The ways that the world adapted around the lowering temperatures are really inventive and I was glued to my page as I read along. The whole Truman Show idea was brilliantly melded in and it all made sense.

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I enjoyed the characters and the inventive setting, and this is a read I'll be recommending to other readers. Fantastic.

Thanks to Random House Children’s Books, NetGalley, and Soyoung Park for the opportunity to review this lovely book. In this world the elite of the world are able to live within the Snowglobe in a temperate environment and they live their lives on camera so that those on the outside can live vicariously through them. Meanwhile, people on the outside work in nuclear power plants to keep the power going and provide electricity to the people in the globe and on the outside. But there are secrets that are hidden both inside and outside and if our heroine is not careful she may end up dead like her predecessor. Something’s wrong with the Snowglobe and she needs to find out who or what it is before her time runs out.
Well worth picking up, you are sure to enjoy this story and find it hard to put down.

This was such a unique concept, and I feel as though it was executed well. I really loved the story, and it had me invested page after page. Thank you netgalley for an arc of this book.

Chobahm lives with her brother, mother, and grandmother in a city that is always cold. Going outside can quickly kill you without protective clothing. She, her mom, and brother all work at a factory where they must walk to keep the machines working to supply power for light and warmth for their city. They are entertained by the TV shows of the one place that has warmth left, Snowglobe, a domed city. Its residents are the stars of reality TV shows, almost always on camera. Chobamh longs to be a director and live in Snowglobe. It looks so wonderful. She'll find what it takes to keep Snowglobe going and the darkness behind the pretty world on TV.
This was an interesting look at a supposed utopia that was just as dystopian as the rest of the planet. Chobahm is ambitious and also has a strong sense of what is right. I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to those like strong female protagonists who may struggle to do what is right. Already purchased for the Young Adult (Teen) Department.